Annette Dashofy's Blog, page 3

Changes Ahead

"The only constant in life is change." - Heraclitus

I like to think I'm pretty flexible regarding detours and changes in life. An event gets canceled? Oh well. An appointment has to be rescheduled? Fine. 

But I'm facing a BIG change within the next few days, and I confess, I'm anxious.

At the end of this week, my husband will retire.

We've been together for a long time. A long long time. He's gone through various employers and work schedules, but for the last decade, he's worked at the same place, steady daylight shift, Monday through Friday. He leaves at the same time every morning and is home at (mostly) the same time every afternoon. It's been easy for me to set my writing schedule around his work schedule. Kensi and I have the house to ourselves all day. We enjoy the quiet.

That's about to end.

Okay, Hubby and I have had a few times where we've been at home together 24/7. When he had surgery for a torn rotator cuff, he was off for SIX MONTHS. That was a rough one, mostly because he was in a brace for the first part of it, unable to do much of anything including drive. I figure if we survived that, and I continued to get my books written, we should be fine.

And we should. We will. But it's going to involve change. Will I still get up at 4:30 a.m.? Probably not, but Kensi will no doubt have her say in the matter. Will I still get my writing done in the morning? Probably. I do have deadlines. But concessions will need to be made. 

I'm open to suggestions and advice from anyone who's already been down this path.  

(Not) The End

My goal was to complete the messy first draft of Honeywell #4 over this past weekend. I kinda sorta did. But not really. There's one more scene needed to wrap it up, but as I stared at the page yesterday, that scene wouldn't reveal itself. I understand why. 

This will be the scene that wraps up any loose ends, explains any pesky questions that may not have been answered fully during the action of the story, and (hopefully) sets up the next book. 

The problem arises from my not knowing what I've left unexplained...and knowing that one thread needs to come out. I had good intentions for it, but it never went anywhere. So it must go. 

I've decided to leave that final scene alone for now. I'm starting over. Draft 2. It will give me a chance to make notes about details I forgot about. Stuff that should go into that final scene. And I can cut anything referring to that incomplete thread. 

I did much the same thing when I wrote Helpless. Only that time, I did write a final scene for the sole purpose of being able to type THE END. Then I ended up totally rewriting it. So, I figure this time, I'll save myself a little work. 

Kensi Update

I just realized I didn't further update everyone on Kensi's visit to the cardiologist. It went really well. I mean, REALLY well. Short of being told her heart had miraculously been repaired and she would live another 14 years, the news was as good as possible. She's stable. Nothing is getting worse. One of her symptoms wasn't evident at all during the echocardiogram. We're to keep on doing what we're doing. And unlike our regular vet, the cardiologist said she didn't need to lose weight, BUT she shouldn't gain any more either. 

As for the gakking following the visit to the regular vet, I did my own research and learned the antibiotic shot she gets for her upper respiratory wheezing lists stomach upset and nausea as a side effect. How did I miss that the dozen or so previous times she's gotten it? The cardiologist told me to give her a quarter of a Pepcid pill for her stomach as needed. So far (knock on wood) it hasn't been. She had one hairball incident, but...well...cats and hairballs. It's a thing. And compared to everything else we're dealing with, it's a minor thing.

 

Sick Kensi and Book News

I've had a couple of rocky weeks with Kensi. She'd been doing well as far as tummy issues were concerned. Then I took her to the vet for a checkup. She'd been sneezing and wheezing, so I knew an antibiotic shot was in order. Plus, she has an appointment with her cardiologist at the end of this month, so I wanted bloodwork done. (If they do it at the cardiologist appointment, the same test would cost twice as much). All was well except for her heart numbers, which was expected.

What wasn't expected was the extreme bout of nausea and all that entails, which happened last Saturday. And again on Wednesday night. No real fainting, but one very sick and unhappy kitty. I spent a few sleepless nights, worrying over her. Then, last night, she started gobbling down her dry food (and kept it down) AND she started acting frisky again. Well, as frisky as a 14-year-old heart murmur kitty who's carrying a little extra fluff can be. 

I slept well last night for the first time in a week.

Meanwhile, I learned that the audiobook of What Comes Around is now up for preorder. Good news for all those waiting to listen to it.

 In other news, HarperCollins 360 has put Keep Your Family Close on sale for $1.99 until July 8.

Other than that, I'm still waiting--for the print version of Keep Your Family Close to become available in the US and for the cover and title of the third Honeywell mystery. This morning, I turned in my second round of revisions, so I'm back to focusing on the rough first draft of the fourth one. 

Mid June Update

Let's catch up from my last post.

The Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books was fabulous despite some inclement weather. My panel was indoors, and the rain didn't start until my signing beneath a tent was wrapping up.

Photo courtesy of Martha Reed
My "fellow thriller writer" panelists were awesome. The quotation marks are because I felt like a fraud being labeled a thriller writer, not because of the two gentlemen on the panel. They were legit. And kind. They made me feel like I belonged there. 

I made it to my second appearance that day with time to spare. I did not, however, remember to take photos or ask anyone else to.

The Pennwriters Conference was amazing as always. I spent some quality time with my fabulous friend, Hank Phillippi Ryan, who helped me brainstorm plot twists for a future book. 

More recently, I participated in a local author book event in Waynesburg, PA, and officially launched What Comes Around at Mystery Lovers Bookshop.

Next up is Noir UNDER the Bar this coming Saturday at Alphabet City's Word Cellar in Pittsburgh's North Side. I and a bunch of other Pittsburgh area Sisters in Crime will be reading from our works. 

Otherwise, I'm pounding out pages on Honeywell Mystery #4. I turned in my revisions on Honeywell Mystery #3, and my editor was very pleased. I'm now eagerly waiting to see the cover art and learn what its real name will be. 

Oh, and I'm watching wildlife outside my kitchen window. 

Scatterbrained

Here's a list of what's been going on.

Helpless did not win the Agatha. My streak holdsWhat Comes Around is now available in ebook and paperback.What Comes Around will be out in audiobook in July.I had a root canal, followed by a temporary crown, followed by a permanent crown.I finally got some contractual stuff settled (going back to my agent's death in November.)I've been trying to work on developmental edits for the next Honeywell mystery. 

Here's a list of what's coming up.Thriller Panel at the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books, Saturday at 10:30 a.m.Cozy Panel at the Upper St. Clair Library, Saturday at 2:00 p.m.Pennwriters Conference, May 17-18 

The parts I find ridiculously funny are the two panels on Saturday. First, because I'm double-booked and am praying I don't hit traffic getting from one to the other. Second, because I'm classified as a thriller author in the morning and a cozy author in the afternoon. 
Those aren't the same thing. But, hey, I'm versatile.
And I hope to see you at one of these.  

So Much Stuff!

I've been busy. I turned in the next Detective Honeywell manuscript on March 1. Afterward, I spent most of the month taking care of boring non-writing stuff. Annual doctors' exams and tests that I'd been putting off. Tax preparation. Other necessary but uninteresting personal odds and ends. As the end of the month neared, Matthias and Emma were getting rambunctious inside my head, so I started drafting what is currently being called "Honeywell #4." 

It was kind of fun having only that one book on my plate. 

Of course, that didn't last long. Along came the cover art for the next Zoe Chambers mystery!

I love it!

Next, my developmental edits for Honeywell #3 arrived earlier this week. There aren't really a lot, but a few of them require a lot of thought. The changes will make it a much stronger book, but I'm now working on two different books at the same time. Draft Honeywell #4 in the morning, revise Honeywell #3 in the afternoon. 

Oh, and my line edits for What Comes Around are supposed to arrive in my inbox within the next few days. 

I've always said I can work on TWO books at the same time, but not THREE. I'm trying to get a lot of work done on #4 before those line edits drop, because that's the one that will have to go onto the back burner for a while. 

In other news, as if I didn't have enough on my mind, Kensi Kitty had a bad spell yesterday morning. She'd been doing great, and I hope this was just a blip because she's fine today. With less than two weeks until I head to Bethesda for Malice Domestic and the Agatha Award Banquet, I'm getting ready to teach The Dad how to give Kensi her pills. Wish us all luck!

More Matthias!

The week before my then-agent Dawn Dowdle passed away, she'd called me to tell me One More Chapter (HarperCollins UK) wanted three more Detective Honeywell mysteries! We'd started negotiating in the days leading up to her death. Then the bottom dropped out.

Fast forward a few weeks. I signed with Paula Munier at Talcott Notch. But there were lots of contractual complications in dealing with the closing of Dawn's agency. Then the publishing world closed down for the holidays. But things kicked into high gear recently and resulted in this:

It's official. Matthias Honeywell and Emma Anderson will be back for three more books, the first one set to release this December. And I should mention, Beyond Redemption is my working title. I'm certain my publisher will change it by the time it comes out. They always manage to come up with better titles than I do!

Lucky Number Seven?

Earlier this week, this happened:

HELPLESS has garnered my seventh Agatha nomination. 

I still remember my first one. Back then, we were notified by a phone call. I'm pretty sure I broke the poor woman's eardrum with my scream. That was the only time I screamed at the news. Every time since then, I've sobbed happy, grateful tears. Now, we're notified by email, so only my husband gets to witness my tears. 

We don't know who else is nominated until the official announcement. 

Holy cow, what an incredible group of books and authors! 

I have so many wonderful readers who are cheering me on. "This is your year!" they say. I smile and silently remind myself of Einstein's definition of insanity: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Of course, I always hope to hear my name called. Part of me has an irrational lust to possess one of those Agatha teapots, but I'm well aware that the true honor is in the nomination. I've shared the stage with Louise Penny, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Ellen Byron, Margaret Maron, and many other deserving authors. This year, Tara Laskowski, Ellen Byron, Gigi Pandian, and Korina Moss are my fellow nominees.

Sidenote: They all have teapots. All of them.

They're also all friends of mine. So, no matter who wins, I'll be cheering. 

Looking Ahead...2024

Last year, I failed miserably in my intent to slow down. This year, I'm taking measures to see that I will be able to slow down in the near future. We'll see how it goes.

I realized yesterday that I can't yet talk about much of what's on my plate for 2024. I have a book deal sitting on a desk while everyone's off on holiday break. Until that contract is signed, I'm keeping quiet. Suffice it to say, I'm writing a book that should come out at the end of the year. More on that later.

I'm teaching a couple of writing courses this year, one in January, another in November. Plus, I have a couple of workshops scheduled. 

The 13th Zoe Chambers Mystery, What Comes Around, is scheduled for release in May. Stay tuned for more on that (cover reveal, pre-orders), too. 

I have two other books to outline and one of those to write before the end of the year. 

I'm sorry I'm being so vague. Basically, I'm saying, that in 2024, I plan to write two books and outline a third. I plan to teach several writing classes. I'm registered to attend Malice Domestic in April and the Pennwriters Conference in May. 

That's it for my professional life.

Personally, I intend to continue my yoga and meditation practice to get me through what is sure to be a stressful year, and I hope to pick up the pace of my exercise routine. I want to spend as much time with Kensi Kitty as I can because, with her heart issues, there are no guarantees. 

I would say I hope to do a better job of keeping my house clean, but I can't even type that with a straight face! 

Happy New Year, everyone!